Bruno Messerli,

Please cite as: Messerli B, Viviroli D, Weingartner R, 2004. Mountains of the World: Vulnerable Water Towers for the 21st Century. AMBIO Special Report, 13, 29–34.

Daniel Viviroli and Rolf Weingartner

Mountains Vulnerable

of the World: Water Towers

as "Water Towers" play an important role for Mountains true of the the surrounding lowlands. This is particularly world's semiarid and arid zones, where the contributions are 50-90%. to total discharge of mountains into Taking account in these the increasing water scarcity regions, for irrigation and food production, then today's especially state of knowledge inmountain sustain hydrology makes able water management and an assessment of vulner the IPCC report, the zone ability quite difficult. Following of maximum in a 2 x C02 state ex increase temperature in the arctic and sub-arctic tends from low elevation to in the tropics and subtropics. The planned high elevation GCOS climate stations do not reach this elevation of there are many high high temperature change, although mountain sensitive and vul peaks with the necessary more nerable ecosystems. than 700 million Worldwide, live in mountain areas, of these, 625 million are people in developing countries. Probably more than half of these 625 million people are vulnerable to food insecurity. Con or over of this insecurity can be emigration sequences use of mountain of the ecosystems Overuse ecosystems. effects on the environment will, ultimately, have negative on water resources. and especially New research initia are needed tives and new high mountain observatories in order to understand the ongoing natural and human on and their the lowlands. processes impacts adjacent

for

21st

the

Century

indicates that the main risk areas lie tropics and subtropics, within the seasonal precipitation the mon regime between soon and Mediterranean type of climate. New demographic data show, that about 70% of the world population is living between 30?N and 30?S, ifwe include the densely populated plains of the Indus and the Yellow River. This means, about 4 billion compared to a total of 5.7 billion people on our planet live in this climatic and hydrologically sensitive and hazard ous zone (2). It is in these regions in particular that the moun towers will play an increasingly tains as water important role for the people in the highlands and in the surrounding lowlands. The dryer the lowlands, the greater the importance of

the more

mountain

research

areas.

mountain

humid

tity and quality will

probably for

the

coming

water

Therefore,

be the most decades.

critical Water

quan

topics

in

resources

inmountain areas may be subject to dramatic changes within the coming decades, due to ongoing and potentially acceler ated changes in atmospheric conditions as well as terrestrial systems response. The impact of these anticipated changes is particularly critical for mountain systems, because they con stitute the water towers that will be the source of competing uses of water for irrigation, drinking water, hydropower, in dustrial uses, and partly also for recreational purposes within the mountains and in the lowlands (3).

THE HYDROLOGICALSIGNIFICANCEOF MOUNTAINS AND HIGHLANDS Basic Knowledge

INTRODUCTION "Poor access to freshwater means that two billion people cur rently live under what experts call severe water stress. With this figure is ex population growth and economic expansion, to double 2025. Climate pected by nearly change would fur ther exacerbate this situation". This quotation inWallstr?m et al. (1) depicts the dramatic situation today and the uncer tainty regarding the future in the wake of the rapidly grow and irrigation industrialization ing population, urbanization, for food production, especially in the developing world. The UN General Assembly has wisely the period proclaimed as the International Decade 2005-2015 for Action, "Water on World Water Day, 22 March 2005. for Life", beginning The main aim is to further cooperation at all levels in order to achieve water-related of the Millenium Declaration, goals the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation of theWorld Sum mit for Sustainable Development and Agenda 21. The same as the "Interna also has been proclaimed period 2005-2015 tional Decade for Education for Sustainable Development". This combination of "Water for Life" and "Sustainable De is very important and holds promise, also for the velopment" preservation

and management

resources.

of water

The fact that two billion people are living under severe water stress, and that most of these people are living in the

Ambio Special Report 13,November 2004

?

Royal

Gained

in the European

Alps

The European Alps may serve as a model region for hydro logical studies, since reliable and relatively detailed data are available for this area. In the case of the Rhine river, a clear upper section and discharge pattern between the mountainous the lower reaches of the river can be detected as a result of the change in the feeder supply from snow in the mountains to rain

in the downstream

areas.

In an average

year,

discharge

in the Swiss section of the Rhine, which ismainly mountain ous, contributes 45% of total discharge, although the catch ment area in Swiss territory represents only 22% of the total watershed. In the summer months, the discharge contribution of the Swiss section clearly surpasses 60% with the melting of snow and ice in the high Alps (4). In addition, Baumgart ner et al. (5) estimate that precipitation are about volumes 2.2 times larger in the Alps than in Europe, whereas evapora tion volumes are comparable, which results in discharge vol umes for the Alps 3.3 times larger than those for Europe as a whole. These generalized patterns are further confirmed by an analysis of catchment-based data from the European Wa ter Archives and dis (6), which showed larger precipitation charge volumes as well as more reliable discharge patterns for the Alpine section of the Rhine catchment (4). Moreover, to obtain an overview it is possible of the basic hydrologie character of the whole catchment and to differentiate be

Swedish Academy of Sciences 2004 29 http://www.ambio.kva.se

tory for most regions of the world. The relationship between mountains and lowlands was examined, stations above an altitude primarily using gauging of 1000 m and the second one in the vicinity of the In addition, river mouth. it was an important con station was situated dition, that the upper gauging in a real mountain relief and topography, ideally as to the borderline between moun close as possible tain and plain. In addition, the regional precipitation and temperature conditions were taken into account, in order to incorporate the discharge regime into the climatic context of the region. In general, the particular characteristics of mountain areas are manifested by disproportionately large discharge, typically about twice the amount that could be expected from the areal proportion of the Relative annual contribution of mountain discharge account for mountainous section (Fig. 1). Mountains monthlycontribution T The verticallinesdenote theminimumandmaximum And and semi-arid areas of total in humid in 20-50%) while areas, discharge Humid areas Relative size of mountain area semiarid and arid areas, the contribution of moun 1. Mean annual mountain to total discharge contribution of freshwater Figure tains to total discharge are 50-90% with extremes of area and proportion of mountain in the vi station by a gauging (represented over 90%) (Fig. 1 ;e.g. Nile and Orange inAfrica, Amu to the entire 1000 m a.s.l.) relative catchment for the selected cinity of about river basin. in North America Darya in Central Asia, Colorado and Rio Negro in South America). Moreover, dis areas is highly reliable tween mountainous and lowland sections using discharge charge from mountainous and accounts for a significant reduction in the coefficient of measurements (4). On that score, insights into the hydrology areas can be transferred with due care from variation of total discharge (7). These and other findings were of mountainous the Alps to other major mountain ranges (7). As an example, quantified and used to elaborate an overall assessment of the the discharge pattern of the Euphrates is dominated by large hydrological significance of mountain areas. The study reveals volumes of meltwater from the Pontine and the Taurus moun very clearly, that the world's most significant water towers are found in arid and semiarid zones (Fig. 2). tains, with the result, that mountain discharge between March i?Extremely important?i

r

-Very important

Important

100%

and May is actually greater than the rest of the total dis the one hand, charge. On areas generate the low-lying at all, virtually no discharge and on the other hand, dis charge is in fact "consumed" for irrigation pur principally the portion of poses. Overall, in total discharge generated the mountain section of the catchment varies between 55% and 100% according to the season (7). Other ex amples are shown in Figure 1. That this preliminary ap proach to a global or at least a stands for regional overview an appeal to the strong need for more detailed and better data in order to make more about the precise assessments of hydrological significance mountains.

An Approach Water Towers

Hydrological

importance

of mountain

ranges

Type

^L

J^

important

A

very important

A

not very important II semi-arid, sub-humid

Figure

2. Hydrological

significance

to Quantifying

A preliminary of the hydrologi approach to an assessment cal significance of mountains and highlands was taken using discharge data provided by the Global Runoff Data Center (GRDC) (8). River basins in various parts of the world were selected as case studies. On a global scale, very few measure ment series exist, the periods covered are very limited and the evaluation of the spatial and temporal heterogeneity of areas is not yet satisfac in mountain discharge conditions

of

-> directionof rivercourse

extremely important

of mountain

ranges

Retarding

Effect

U

for selected

of Snow

in lowland area

climate

arid

hyper-arid,

river basins,

based

on

Figure

1.

and Ice Storage

of snow-cover is a prerequisite of all Knowledge dynamics studies of hydrology, and biology in mountain climatology areas. As an example, the spatial variability of snow cover in the European Alps is very high, due to the orientation in the on the Norm the different climatic conditions westwinds, and South-sides, and to the change from the more oceanic western to the more continental eastern side (9). Such dif ferences are probably much more pronounced in the vast mountain like the and the Andes. So far, systems Himalayas

? Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences 2004 30 http://www.ambio.kva.se

Ambio

Special Report 13,November

2004

across all longitudes and based on the average of 8 general of the snow-height only time series of point measurements the control runs circulation model and water equivalent have been investigated, but no special simulations, comparing with the 2 x C02 simulations. The values are superimposed information on the highly sensitive and dynamic snow-cover on a transect through the Americas to Antarc are available for longer time series. However, from Alaska since 1981, the of Bern receives and of the University Institute of Geography ranges tica, which shows the highest points of the mountain archives without any interruption the NOAA-AVHRR data, (white line). The mean annual freezing line (from radiosonde status is data) is shown as a black line. The black dots indicate the covering the whole Alps. Since 2001, an operational a 1.1 Climate Observing km2 for the whole Global with resolution of the data reached, System (GCOS) stations and their are cordil with the distribution after available elevation, planned for the western ground immediately receipt by Alps leras of the Americas. The basic document comes from IPCC station (9). If we use the example of the Alps, we should and techniques would (12), all additional elements are from R. Bradley, University keep in mind, that the same methods of Massachusetts, the Andes or the Central Asian be possible for the Himalayas, Amherst; (pers. comm). This most fasci The Aral basin is a very instruc mountains. tive example for such a snow regime (10). Temperature Change and GCOS Stations along the Cordillera In the high mountains of Tien Shan and ranges from Pamir, the annual precipitation mm with 30% falling as snow. 600-2000 10000 The lowland deserts cover most of the basin less and are characterized by low rainfall 8000 than 100 mm yr1 and high evaporation. Be cause of snow and glacier melt, the flows of the two rivers Amu Darya and Syr Daria are ? 6000 by highest in summer and are characterized 1 a low interannual variability, which is very 4000 re water of for the management important sources. If we take into consideration that the mountains provide more than 95% of the 2000 the then we understand basin's freshwater, in the of the snow-cover high significance in the desert mountains for the hydrology lowlands.

Missing Knowledge: of Vulnerability

Uncertain

with in mean annual 3. Projected temperature changes Figure on The white line shows the highest the Americas. peaks through dots annual line. The black line shows the mean black freezing see text. (Pers. comm.). For further comments GCOS stations.

Assessment

areas is in mountain The runoff generation an hetero characterized extraordinary by of and soils, by a spatially topography, vegetation geneity snow-cover and especially by and temporally differentiated extreme events and high seasonal and annual climate vari in the mountain data series are missing ability. Long-range in the critical zones of the tropics and hydrology, especially is very limited subtropics. All this means, that our knowledge in different altitudes and under about the runoff generation different natural conditions and land-use systems (11). Espe cially for the semiarid and arid zones itwould be important in the allu to know, how far the recharge of the groundwater vial plains is directly connected to the runoff from mountain in the valley bottoms areas, as it can be seen and measured around the Alps. Taking into account the increasing water for ir scarcity in these semiarid and arid regions, especially the current state of knowledge rigation and food production, is inadequate, and is making sus about mountain hydrology and an assessment of vulnerabil tainable water management ity impossible.

THE DYNAMICS OF THE NATURAL SYSTEM AS A SOURCE OF CHANGING VULNERABILITY and climate change are important ele Climate variability resources in the ments of freshwater for the assessment mountains of the different climatic zones. Figure 3 shows the increase of the mean annual temperature with doubled not only levels of carbon dioxide, taking into consideration a horizontal, but also a vertical differentiation of the project ed global climate change. The values are zonally averaged, Ambio Special Report 13,November

2004

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Royal

2 x C02. A this transect the indicate

transect and the planned

temperature nating figure shows that the zone of maximum simulate extends from low elevation change that the models in the tropics in the arctic and sub-arctic to high elevation and Southern Hemispheres. and subtropics on the NorthernIt is interesting to see, that even the highest peaks do not extend into the zone of maximum warming, but they are still projected to reach the warming zone of 2? to 3?C. This figure in order to avoid a zonally is further developed by Bradley for all value longitudes around the globe. He sim averaged the data for the mountain extracted regions of the transect ply based on different models. As a result, through the Americas, the study shows almost the same pattern with the same eleva in the tropics and subtropics. tion of the maximum warming increases appear to be directly re These high temperature in the rising limb of the Hadley lated to enhanced convection circulation, with release of latent heat. The temperature data from Barnaul, the main town in front in southern Siberia are an interesting of the Altai mountains station was es contribution to this figure. This climatological tablished in 1835 and has one of the longest ranges of data in Asia. It is interesting to see, that in the 120 years from 1838 to 1958, the mean annual temperature increased by 1.77?C. In the following 43 years from 1958 to 2001 itwas 1.45?C, of the warming pro showing a most interesting acceleration cess. In other words, on a latitude of about 50?N, in the cen ter of the Eurasian continent, the mean annual temperature increased over the last 60 years by around 2?C (13). This much higher than in the mid- and low order of magnitude, is a certain confirma latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere,

Swedish Academy of Sciences 20043 1 http://www.ambio.kva.se

tion for the simulated different warming at low elevations, can be seen in Figure 3. In the framework of our topic, two points are of interest:

THE DYNAMICS OF THE HUMAN SYSTEM AS A SOURCE OF CHANGING VULNERABILITY

as

the UNEP WCMC (World Conservation Centre) definition of mountains Monitoring (16, 17) with 6 altitudinal classes, covering about 22% of the earth's surface. Areas with an altitude of 2500 m or higher are always classi fied as mountains. Between 300 and 2500 m, areas are consid ered mountainous if they exhibit steep slopes or have a wide range of elevation in a small area or both. The Lofoten Islands in northern Norway may serve as an example. Very steep walls of rock, more than 1000 m high, beginning just at sea level, the tops covered by snow even in the summer months. FAO used its own unique databank about population, liveli hoods and land use, constraints and vulnerability of mountain people, in a special GIS-based analysis (17) to classify these data and to integrate them in the abovementioned mountain definition with a special focus on the developing world. As a result, FAO estimate the total number of mountain people at 718 million in 2000. Of these, 625 million live in developing countries and the Commonwealth of Independent States, for mer Soviet Union (CIS). Of the total mountain area in these countries 60% is located at altitudes below 1500 m, and 70% of the mountain population lives there. By contrast, only 15% of the mountain area is situated above 3500 m, and only 2.5% of the population inhabits these regions. Although urbaniza tion and the growth of mountain cities is important in some regions like the Andes, more than 75% of mountain people in countries and the CIS are still rural (16). developing FAO

has used

First the planned GCOS stations do not reach?in the criti cal zone between 30?N and 30?S?the elevation of high tem perature change. There are enough mountain peaks, but they are not beeing used to form a network of observatories, which could serve as an early warning Re system. The Mountain search Initiative (MRI) has taken up this problem and initiated a planning process for a new and long-term observation and research project in the mountains of the world (14). tem Second, we do not know yet, how this differentiated perature change will affect the precipitation regime in the in this critical zone of the tropics and mountains, especially and precipitation subtropics. Temperature changes must al "On a global scale, ways be regarded as coupled variables. the term climate change is often equated with the term cli mate warming. the energy cycle of the climate However, is linked with the hydrological system intrinsically cycle. To a first approximation, itwould indeed be more appropri ate to equate climate change with climate moistening". This interesting statement, Sch?r and Frei 2004 (in press), may show the significance of the hydrological cycle, but also the difficulties related to evaluation of potential changes. Pre cipitation will not occur uniformly, but changes will be asso ciated with specific geographical and topographical patterns and will vary with seasons. More specifically, the mid- and a high relative in high latitudes are expected to experience crease in total precipitation, in particular during there is evidence that subtropical winter, while Vulnerable mountain people, an in and semiarid regions might experience creased risk for summer droughts More class and estimated (15). Vulnerability proportion of mountain people over, heavy precipitation events, which are most who are vulnerable are not processes, important for the hydrological Very East and linked to mean precipitation amounts. directly high Southeast Asia (60-80%) Without going into more details it is obvious that the consequences of global "warming" on global Relatively Latin America a very complex and partly is still low "moistening" research

contradictory

process.

As

an

we quote the IPCC report (12) with the projected changes of the mean annual runoff data for 2050, Two compared with the values for 1961-1990. different general Ocean-Atmosphere-Circula tion Models of the Hadley Center with a 1%>an nual increase of C02 were used to draft these two world maps. A close comparison shows the very different results, especially for mountain regions like the southern Rocky Mountains, the Andes, parts of East Africa, Central Asia, the Himalayas and the Indian plains, etc. Clearly, we are con fronted with serious uncertainties, for especially the developing in this highly sensitive countries climatic

zone,

where

mountain

water

(20-40%)

and the Caribbean

Quite high (40-60%)

Sub-Saharan Africa

Quite high (40-60%)

South Asia and CIS*

Quite high (40-60%)

Near East and North Africa**

example,

ecosystems.

2000

Estimated number of mountain people who are vulnerable to food insecurity (millions) 50 0 100 150 200 250 300

I

: ?Total mountain population | Vulnerable mountain population j Range of vulnerability estimate

* Afghanistan '*including excludingAfghanistanand Turkey

*

4. FAO estimates are living in the mountains that 625 million of the Figure people more countries and the CIS. Probably than half are living in a situation developing

of food insecurity (16).

resources

play a fundamental role for the adjacent lowlands. even slight changes in the temperature regime can Moreover, have strong impacts on the snow-cover and on the glaciers, which influence or even change the runoff regime. In this should have sense, a network of high mountain observatories a high priority as an indicator system for the whole water cycle and for water supply. This is one important element in the life support systems, especially in the semiarid and arid regions, which cover most probably more than 40% of the earth's land surface. Changes in natural systems will deter mine the changes in the vulnerability of the most sensitive mountain

by region,

Most interesting in relation to our topic is FAO's estimate that about 40% of the mountain area in developing countries and the CIS produces less than 100 kg of cereals per person per year. Rural people living in such locations have difficulty in obtaining an adequate livelihood from agriculture. FAO has used estimates of their number together with other qualitative information to arrive at a preliminary estimate of the number of mountain to food insecurity. people who are vulnerable Based on information currently available, more than half of the mountain population in developing and CIS countries, in the range of 250 - 370 million people, are vulnerable to food

? Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences 2004 32 http://www.ambio.kva.se

Ambio

Special Report 13,November 2004

should not be insecurity (Fig. 4). This estimate of vulnerability confused with FAO's estimates of the undernourished popula tion. Typically, about half of those identified as vulnerable are actually undernourished (16). all the other factors and Without taking into consideration constraints, which could contribute directly or indirectly to food insecurity like climatic conditions and ex vulnerable treme events, water availability, soil quality, demographic social and cultural aspects, political pressure or emigration, constraints, poor accessibility and isolation, missing education and health service, nonexistent integration in a local market or a national economy, etc., we must accept that food insecurity is not only an important, but also an integrating factor for the of a society. The consequences of such a situa vulnerability tion

are

serious.

Either

we

have

an

or we

emigration

an

have

extension and intensification of the land-use system. Extension entails the use of marginal land and crossing some ecological too thresholds, e.g. going high, and becoming endangered by frost, or going too steep, and becoming endangered by erosion. Excessive intensification of agricultural practices can lead to the impoverishment of the soils, to erosion or with the use of too much fertilizer to pollution of the water sources. Food in security can be the beginning of destructive impacts on land use and land cover, on mountain ecosystems and especially on the most sensitive headwater systems. In all our future research projects it is always instructive to pay

attention

to paleoenvironmental

about 400 years BC mountains...what

now

: "...and remains

it had much

in its

forest-land

with

compared

wrote

Plato

experiences.

what

then

ex

isted is like the skeleton of a sick man..."(18). The follow to in survive had and ing generations destroyed ecosystems was the then and is still damaged hydrological systems, price very high. What is happening today in some parts of the Afri can mountains, happened 2400 years ago in some parts of the Mediterranean

mountains.

In all future research projects we need to look back, but we also need to look forward. We must integrate human activities, they are important driving forces in the framework of global change research. For theMountain Research Institute an ideal situation would be cooperation with UNESCO's Mountain Reserves and wherever Biosphere (MBR) situating, possible, in a Mountain observatories high mountain Biosphere Re serve (19). Today, about 440 Biosphere Reserves exist, about 200 in the mountains of the world. Each Biosphere Reserve is intended to fulfil three basic functions, which are comple mentary and mutually i) conservation reinforcing: (biodiver sity, ecosystems); ii) development (environment and develop ment); and Hi) logistics (international network for research and the concept of a Biosphere Reserve monitoring). Moreover, contains

several

zones:

a core

zone

(in mountains

mostly

the

unused higher altitudes); a buffer zone (restricted use of eco zone (in mountains mostly the systems); and a development lower parts or the valley bottoms with all the human activities (21). But we should not forget, in a time of climate variabil ity and climate change, that the hydrological cycle reproduces in the sensitive ecosystems of higher al changing conditions titudes (snow, glacier, permafrost, highest vegetation limits), and transfers this message down to the human system, to land use,

settlements,

infrastructure,

etc.

before

any

other

compo

nent of the environment in lower altitudes shows a first signal of change. as water towers are into the future, mountains Looking threatened by other types of intervention. Until recently, dams and reservoirs were constructed in the mountains to store the water used for irrigation in the dry season. But the order of has begun to change, with new technological and magnitude Ambio Special Report 13,November 2004

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Royal

the water is no longer stored in the engineering possibilities, mountain areas, it is diverted and transported over long dis tances. An example is the recent report on the "River Link Mega Project" in India (21). Why should 97%) of the Brahma putra water flow unused into the Gulf of Bengal, when India is suffering from water scarcity? The project should, ideally, link 37 big river systems. This will need 32 dams, 9600 km of canals, pumps and power stations, with the overall goal being to link even southern India to the Himalayas with the water from Brahmaputra and Ganges. China has begun construction of a huge project, called the "South-to-North Water Transfer", from the Yangtze River to the Yellow River on three levels, from west to east with an up per, a middle, and a lower canal system. The longest of these canals extends more than 1000 km (22). Lesotho is selling its mountain water to an agglomeration in Johannesburg, and a transfer of water from the Pyrenees to southern Spain is un der discussion. More projects and more conflicts will come, especially, where water crosses international borders. This is yet another aspect of vulnerability, but also strongly related to ongoing natural and human environmental changes.

NATURALAND HUMAN DRIVING FORCES: VULNERABLEWATER TOWERS Locally and regionally differentiated changes in temperature, snow-cover and glacier storage are likely to precipitation, areas with respect alter discharge from mountain-dominated to timing, volume, and variability, and will ultimately influ ence runoff characteristics in lowlands. Catchments which are dominated by snow are particularly sensitive to change, and will therefore be most strongly affected by shifts in discharge patterns.

Snowpack makes up 75%) of all water in streams through out the west of the United States, but now the snowpack lev els have dropped considerably throughout the American West in response to a 0.8?C wanning since the 1950s. Some areas saw a in the Cascade Mountains of Oregon and Washington decline of 60%> in total snow accumulation. The biggest de creases occurred at the lowest elevation, suggesting a rise in the freezing level (23). The was observed in the Alps with de creasing

snow-cover

at

lower

elevations

and

even

increases

at

higher elevations. Not only is the global climate changing, in addition popula tion growth in critical lowland areas will accentuate the pres sure

on mountain

water

resources.

This

may

be

shown

more

clearly by the abovementioned large-scale projects. According to theWorld Development Indicators of theWorld Bank (24), 65 countries use over 75% of their available freshwater for Included in this list of agriculture, that is for food production. 65 countries are Egypt, India, China, all countries which rely on mountain discharge. Even if these data are not very reliable, as theWorld Bank confirms, the order of magnitude is impres sive. If a country has to use more than 75% of its freshwater for agriculture alone, how much is then available for rapidly increasing urbanization and industrialization? Of course, there are possibilities to improve agricultural production systems, but all the same, conflicts between water users are unavoid able. The dependence on scarce water resources for the whole of the development process is alarming and a feedback effect on mountain resources and ecosystems is inevitable. these driving forces from the Taking into consideration natural and the human points of view, it becomes a high pri research projects to initiate a high moun ority for mountain tain network of observatories in the framework of the "Global

Swedish Academy of Sciences 2004 33 http://www.ambio.kva.se

Change Research Programs". The highest and the most sensi tive mountain ecosystems throughout all of the climatic zones, in a

-

transect,

pole

-

equator

pole,

are

necessary

as

impor

tant indicator systems. Input from the natural sciences must to the human be coupled through the Biosphere Reserves, and social sciences and to local populations. This is impera tive in order to develop, immediately, the necessary strategies for mitigation and adaptation to global environmental change is needed between the differ processes. Strong cooperation ent mountain research projects Mountain Research Initiative Assessment Global Mountain MRI, (GMBA) Biodiversity (25) and Global Observation Research Initiative inAlpine En a very close collabora vironments (GLORIA) (26). Moreover tion with UNESCO's Mountain Biosphere Reserves Program, with FAO as the leading agency for the mountain chapter (Chapter 13 inAgenda 21) and for the Mountain Partnership is a prerequisite to Program and with other UN-organisations better management of mountain areas. The main goal must be to preserve the functional integrity of the mountain landscapes and ecosystems and to guarantee sustainable use of mountain water

resources.

References

and Notes

1. Wallstr?m, M., Bolin, B.,Crutzen, P. and Steffen, W. 2004. A global crisis, the earth's life - support system is in peril. International Herald Tribune, January 20. 2. CIESIN, (Center for International Earth Science Information Network) 2000. Co IFPRI (International Food Policy Research Institute): WRI lumbia University; (World Resources Institute), Gridded Population of theWorld, Version 2, Palisades, N.Y. http://sedac.ciesin.org/plue/gpw 3. The Abisko Agenda 2002. Research for Mountain Area Development. Rethinking Agenda 21, Chapter 13.A contribution to the UN Year of Mountains 2002. The Roy al Swedish Academy of Sciences, Stockholm. Ambio Special Report 11, 105 pp. 4. Viviroli, D. 2001. Zur hydrologischen Bedeutung der Gebirge. Publikation Gew?s serkunde Nr. 265, Geogr. Inst. Univ. of Berne. (In German). 5. Baumgartner, A., Reichel, E. and Weber, G. 1983. Der Wasserhaushalt der Alpen. im Gesamtgebiet der Al Niederschlag, Verdunstung, Abfluss und Gletscherspende 1931-1960. Munich, Oldenburg. pen imJahresdurchschnitt f?r die Normalperiode (In German). 6. FRIEND (Flow Regimes from International Experimental and Network Data.) 1999. European Water Archive, Institute of Hydrology, Wallingford, CT, U.K. 7. Viviroli, D., Weingartner, R., Messerli, B. 2003. Assessing the hydrological signifi cance of the world's mountains. Mountain Research and Development 23, 32-40. 8. GRDC (Global Runoff Data Center) 1999. Koblenz, Germany. 9. Wunderle, S., Droz, M. and Kleindienst, H. 2002. Spatial and temporal analysis of the snow line in the Alps, based on NOAA-AVHRR Data. Geographica Helvetica, Jg. 57, H 3, 170-183. 10. Spreafico, M. 1997.Without mountains there is no life in theAral Basin. InMesserli B. and Ives J. D. (eds). Mountains of theWorld, Parthenon, London, p. 145. 11. Gurtz, J., Zappa, M., Jasper, K., Lang, H., Verbunt, M., Badoux, A. and Vitvar, T. 2003. A comparative study inmodeling runoff and its components in two mountain ous catchments. Hydrological Processes 17, 297-311 12. IPCC 2001. Climate Change. Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. WMO/UNEP, Cambridge Univ. Press. 13. Reriakin, VS. and Kharlamova, N.F. 2003. Climate Change in Inner Asia. Evalua tion, Climatic Predictions. Abstract. Inst. of Geogr., Russ. Ac. of Sciences, Moscow, pp. 192-193. 14. Reasoner, M. 2003. Newsletter Nr. 1. MRI (The Mountain Research Initiative). Mountain Research and Development 2, 192-193 15.Weatherald, R.T. andManabe, S. 1995. The mechanism of summer dryness induced - 3108. by greenhouse warming. J. Climate 8. 3096 16. FAO 2002. Environment, Poverty and Food Insecurity. The vulnerability of mountain environments and people. FAO special Feature. 19 pp. 17. FAO 2003. Towards a GIS Based Analysis ofMountain Environments and Popula tions. Environment and Resources, Rome, 26 pp. 18. Bury, R.G. (ed.). 1961. Plato, the Complete Works. Vol. VII. Plato, Critias, III a-c. Loeb Classical Library, Harvard Univ. p. 273. 19. Bj?rnsen, A. and Schaaf. T. 2003. Newsletter N. 2. MRI. Global Change Research in UNESCO's Mountain Biosphere Reserves. Mountain Research and Development 3, 316-311. 20. UNESCO 2002. BRIM (Biosphere Reserves). Integrated Monitoring. Social Monito ring. Paris, 33 pp. 21. Imhasly, B. 2003. Ganges -Wasser nach S?dindien, NZZ. Z?rich, p. 25. (InGerman) Li 22. Guoying. 2003. Pond?ration and Practice of the Yellow River Control. Yellow River Conservancy Press, 271 pp. - 1127. 23. Service, R. F. 2004. As the west goes dry. Science. 1124 Indicators. Table 3-5, Freswater. 24. World Bank 2001. World Development

Bruno Messerli studied and geology geography a full profes at the University of Bern. He became sor in 1968. He was Director of the Geographical Institute and Rector 1979-1984 of the University of Bern 1986/87. Professor Messerli has conduct ed field work on problems of glaciation, climate re environmental and natural history, change sources in the mountains in the Alps, of Africa, in the Himalayas He was Chair of and the Andes. the UNESCO MAB - Mountain and Coor Program dinator UNO Mountain Program. [email protected] Rolf Weingartner studied and geol geography a pro of Bern. He became ogy at the University fessor 2003. Since 1989 he has been Head of the of Hydrology and Editor-in-Chief of the Group of Switzerland. Atlas He has con Hydrological in the Swiss Alps, in the ducted research projects Southern and in the Himala Alps of New Zealand interests include: and yas. His research regional of runoff mountain floods, processes hydrology, generation. [email protected] at and geology Daniel Viviroli studied geography a MSc the University of Bern, where he received in 2002. He is currently doctoral student Diploma at Bern University Institute and the Swiss Federal in Z?rich. in of Technology Research Associate in Bern. Research interests: the Hydrology Group water Mountain resources, hydrology, hydrologi cal modelling, floods. [email protected] Their

address:

sity of Bern, Switzerland

of Geography, Univer Institute Hallerstrasse 12, CH-3012 Bern,

(www.worldbank.org) 25. K?rner, Ch. and Spehn, E., 2002. Montain Biodiversity. A Global Assessment. Parthe non, London. 26. Grabherr, G., Gottfried, M. and Pauli, H. 2001. GLORIA (The Global Observation Research Initiative inAlpine Environments). Mountain Research and Development 2, 190-191.

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Special Report

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2004